American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by BayBridge Capital Group LLC

BayBridge Capital Group LLC reduced its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,702 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 46 shares during the period. American Express comprises about 1.2% of BayBridge Capital Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. BayBridge Capital Group LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,692,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the third quarter worth about $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in American Express in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its position in American Express by 332.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Trading Down 1.1 %

NYSE AXP opened at $316.72 on Friday. American Express has a 12 month low of $207.61 and a 12 month high of $326.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $223.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.61, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.24. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $306.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $279.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.63.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.3 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s payout ratio is 19.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total value of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,795. The trade was a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total value of $1,820,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 6,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,952,286.84. The trade was a 48.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 30,664 shares of company stock valued at $9,613,503 in the last three months. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. HSBC boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group increased their target price on American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.38.

American Express Profile

American Express Company, together with its subsidiaries, operates as integrated payments company in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, the Asia Pacific, Australia, New Zealand, Latin America, Canada, the Caribbean, and Internationally. It operates through four segments: U.S. Consumer Services, Commercial Services, International Card Services, and Global Merchant and Network Services.